OSHA's Role in Workplace Safety

MGMT 3379 L06 01 Workplace Safety OSHA

Estimated read time: 1:20

Summary

In this insightful lecture by Jamie Derrick on MGMT 3379 L06 01 about Workplace Safety and OSHA, the focus is on the roles and responsibilities of various employees in maintaining safe and healthy working conditions as mandated by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). From understanding the complexities of safety regulations across industries and states to the importance of being prepared for emergencies, the talk underscores the need for proactive safety measures. The presentation also delves into OSHA's inspection and penalty processes, worker compensation laws, and the intricate balance of compliance and practicality in workplace safety management. Maintaining safety not only prevents harm but also boosts employee morale and productivity.

Highlights

OSHA was established to ensure safe and healthful working conditions by setting and enforcing standards. 📏
There are different OSHA regulations for various sectors like construction, maritime, etc. ⚙️
Organizations must periodically conduct self-inspections to remain compliant. 🏢
Workers have rights to report unsafe conditions and refuse dangerous work. 📢
OSHA inspections can happen without notice and fines for non-compliance are severe. 💼

Key Takeaways

OSHA mandates safe, healthful working conditions for workers across most industries. ⚖️
Safety standards are both federally and state-regulated, with variations possible. 🌐
Regular self-inspections and hazard awareness are crucial for compliance. 🔍
Failure to comply with OSHA rules can lead to hefty fines and even jail time. 🚨
Worker compensation laws provide support irrespective of fault in accidents. 🛡️

Overview

In the lecture, Jamie Derrick emphasizes the critical importance of workplace safety and health, guided largely by OSHA regulations. OSHA, or the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, was created to ensure workers operate in environments free from recognized hazards. Through his lecture, Derrick explains how different industries, whether small or large, must adhere to OSHA’s safety standards, highlighting the diversity in requirements depending on the industry and state laws.

Participants learn about the necessity of proactive self-inspections to identify potential safety hazards. This aligns with OSHA’s mandate, which prioritizes prevention over punishment. Derrick also elaborates on the varying severity of violations—from minor to willful—and the respective penalties that can be imposed. The insight on how a robust safety program not only ensures compliance but also fosters a more efficient, productive workforce helps underline the broader organizational benefits.

Derrick wraps up by addressing workers' rights under OSHA, like the ability to report unsafe conditions without fear of retaliation and the legal processes involved in disputing penalties. He explains how worker compensation laws function to protect employees financially in case of accidents, illustrating the broader socio-economic impact of workplace safety laws and regulations. Through understanding these legislations, employees and HR professionals are better equipped to maintain safe, compliant environments.

Chapters

00:00 - 00:30: Introduction to Workplace Safety The chapter titled "Introduction to Workplace Safety" addresses important aspects of safety and health in the workplace. The lecture is structured into two primary segments, one focusing on violence prevention in the workplace and the other on health and safety perspectives. Emphasis is placed on the significance of maintaining safety and health standards in every organization, highlighting them as vital concerns.
00:30 - 01:00: Assigning Safety Responsibilities The chapter discusses the assignment of safety responsibilities within companies. It explains that while some companies may allocate this responsibility to their production departments, larger corporations might have dedicated safety departments. However, regardless of the structure, all companies are legally required to ensure safe and healthy working conditions for all employees, as mandated by OSHA regulations.
01:00 - 01:30: Understanding OSHA Requirements In the chapter titled 'Understanding OSHA Requirements,' the focus is on comprehending the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) mandates and their applicability within various workplace settings. It highlights the role of HR in ensuring workplace safety, either directly or indirectly, and underscores the significance of understanding organizational alignment with OSHA requirements. The chapter also touches upon the differences in requirements for state agencies, which may not be subject to standard OSHA rules but have their own set of regulations to follow. Overall, the chapter aims to provide clarity on how organizations should navigate OSHA standards and ensure compliance with workplace safety norms.
01:30 - 02:00: HR's Role in Safety Policy Development This chapter discusses the expansive nature of safety requirements across various companies and industries. It highlights how safety laws and regulations can vary significantly, influenced by both state-specific mandates and industry-specific standards. The chapter emphasizes the role of HR in navigating these complexities, noting that HR must be adaptable and well-informed to effectively manage these changing requirements. It underscores the necessity for HR professionals to understand the specific safety policies applicable to their organization as well as any additional restrictions imposed by the industry or state.
02:00 - 03:00: Historical Overview of Health and Safety Laws The chapter titled 'Historical Overview of Health and Safety Laws' likely explores the evolution and development of safety laws and the responses enacted when safety incidents occur. It discusses policy development, particularly in relation to diseases, outbreaks, pandemics, and epidemics. Despite the prominence of COVID-19, the procedures and policies for handling such incidents have been in place long before.
03:00 - 04:00: Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) The chapter discusses the role of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) in ensuring workplace safety. It highlights how the COVID-19 pandemic tested the effectiveness of workplace safety policies. The chapter also touches on the importance of mental health and safety, explaining that while it is not frequently discussed, it is a critical area where Human Resources (HR) can contribute significantly. The chapter introduction refers to the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, emphasizing the employer's responsibility to provide a safe workplace.
04:00 - 05:00: OSHA Inspections and Compliance The chapter delves into OSHA inspections and compliance, emphasizing the legal requirement for workplaces to be free of recognized hazards that could result in death or serious injury to employees. It mentions other related health and safety laws, such as state workers' compensation laws that began in 1911, which provide compensation to injured workers irrespective of the accident's cause. Additionally, the chapter references the Walsh-Healy Act of 1936, highlighting its role in prohibiting specific practices to ensure worker safety.
05:00 - 06:00: Employee Rights and Recordkeeping The chapter titled 'Employee Rights and Recordkeeping' discusses the historical context of labor and employment law, particularly during the early 20th century. It highlights how laws were gradually formed to protect workers from unsanitary, hazardous, or dangerous working conditions. Starting around 1911, amidst the Industrial Revolution, certain states began to implement laws for better working conditions. The focus is on how these early measures laid the groundwork for modern employee rights and recordkeeping practices, especially concerning health and safety standards enforced on government contractors and others.
06:00 - 07:00: OSHA Standards and Categories This chapter discusses the development of compensatory justice systems for employees injured at work, emphasizing the importance of insurance for recovery. It highlights significant legal changes between 1932 and 1936, noting the limited scope of legislative reforms, suggesting that while not comprehensive, these reforms provided some level of protection for workers during that era.
07:00 - 08:00: Workers' Rights and Refusal of Work The chapter delves into the history and development of workers' rights, with a focus on the role of the federal government in setting high standards for working conditions. It highlights the significant legislative milestone of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) in 1970, which established crucial regulations to ensure workplace safety. Although certain small employers and family businesses might be exempt, understanding the process and importance of OSHA remains vital.
08:00 - 09:00: Recordkeeping Changes and Requirements This chapter emphasizes the importance of researching specific recordkeeping requirements for a company. It advises professionals to not only understand general guidelines but also to delve into detailed research to give accurate advice to their employers or clients. Also, the chapter references the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, highlighting its significance in introducing regulations by Congress.
09:00 - 10:00: OSHA Inspections and Priority Ranking This chapter discusses the role of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), an executive branch agency created through legislation. It provides insight into how legislative branches have the power to establish such agencies, using OSHA as an example which was established to ensure safe and healthy working conditions.
10:00 - 12:00: Violations and Penalties The chapter titled 'Violations and Penalties' discusses the role of OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration) in ensuring safe working conditions. OSHA is responsible for developing and enforcing standards to protect workers, alongside offering training, outreach, education, and assistance. The text parallels OSHA's functions with that of the National Labor Relations Board, highlighting the challenges faced by federal administrative agencies in enforcing compliance. These agencies rely on a combination of compulsion and persuasion to ensure that employers adhere to safety standards.
12:00 - 13:00: Top 10 OSHA Citations FY 2022 OSHA emphasizes the importance of providing employers with easily implementable tools to enhance workplace safety, ensuring fewer incidents and compliance with reporting requirements. Penalties can be imposed for non-compliance, underscoring the significance of adhering to OSHA guidelines.
13:00 - 14:00: Creating a Safety Program for Small Companies The chapter focuses on the importance of creating a preventative safety program for small companies. It discusses the ineffectiveness of solely punitive measures due to the large number of employers and incidents. Instead, it emphasizes the need for companies to adhere to safety protocols to prevent harm, highlighting the Occupational Safety and Health Act's coverage of most private sector employers and workers, and some public sector ones.
14:00 - 15:00: Understanding Workers' Compensation This chapter covers the basics of workers' compensation laws, focusing on how they apply across different jurisdictions in the United States, including its territories such as Guam, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, and the US Virgin Islands. It explains the Federal Authority's role in governing workers' compensation regulations in these areas, even though they are not states. The chapter highlights the unique legal considerations and administrative processes involved in managing workers' compensation claims across these distinct regions.
15:00 - 16:00: Conclusion and HR's Role in Workplace Safety This chapter explores the complex and essential roles that different territories like Columbia DC, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands play in the context of workplace safety regulations. The chapter also delves into relevant legislative acts, specifically touching upon how the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) contribute to workplace safety. The author shares their personal experience in researching these standards, underscoring the importance of understanding such legislations for effective HR management in ensuring workplace safety.

MGMT 3379 L06 01 Workplace Safety OSHA Transcription

00:00 - 00:30 today we're going to talk about workplace safety and health and I have uh broken this uh overarching lecture into two primary uh the first few slides will be very similar and we'll break off uh one into uh violence prevention workplace violence and the other into more of a health and safety perspective and uh this one will be health and safety uh so safety and health are vital concerns in every organization a small
00:30 - 01:00 company May assign safety responsibilities to the production department and large corporations may have separate safety department all all themselves but regardless of how responsibility for safety is assigned every company is required by law to quote assure so far as possible every working man and woman in the nation safe and healthful working conditions and to preserve our human resources say section 2B from OSHA the occupational safety and
01:00 - 01:30 health um act and from an HR perspective you may have responsibilities um that are directly associated with with workplace safety but more likely you'll be adjacent to it so it's important to understand the rules and to understand how your organization uh fits within oer requirements or if at all uh I've worked for state agencies and they're not required uh for OSHA they have different requir requirements so it's important to
01:30 - 02:00 understand um what are the requirements for your specific company and how it might change as you move from company to company or industry to Industry uh it can it's a very expansive law and it can the rules uh change and also the additional States will put extra restrictions on different safety requirements different Industries will put additional restrictions from an HR standpoint though a lot of the time uh where we get
02:00 - 02:30 more involved is um the response when there's a safety incident that occurs uh or when it comes into policy development for um diseases uh and um different types of um outbreaks that may occur whether it be a pandemic or um an epidemic um those things existed well before covid those procedures it's just
02:30 - 03:00 covid-19 happened and uh we got to really test our skills on on how those policies were going to work additionally when it comes to mental health and safety we don't talk a lot about that um and that's where uh HR can typically come into and and we'll talk about this as we get through the lecture but I wanted to frame it up that way first so according to the occupational safety and health Act of 1970 it is the responsibility of each employer to provide a place of
03:00 - 03:30 employment that is free from recognized hazards that are causing or likely to cause death or serious physical harm to employees uh other laws affecting health and safety include state workers compensation laws uh that started in 1911 um that compensate Injured Workers regardless of who caused the accident there's also the was Walsh Healy act 1936 uh Walsh Healey uh prohibited um
03:30 - 04:00 government contractors from having uh conditions working conditions that were unsanitary or hazardous or dangerous to the health and safety of employees so when we look back at our labor law and our employment law and the progression of those we have 1911 the earlier stages were're in the middle of uh the Industrial Revolution and we didn't have much law at all but certain states were starting uh to come
04:00 - 04:30 into play when it comes to we should have some form of compensatory Justice if an employee is hurt at our facility um we should there should be some type of an insurance uh to help them recover uh then we move into 1936 in that 1932 to 1936 window we were going through a lot of drastic change um as a legislator legally um and that's where we couldn't do it for everybody but at least the legislators were able
04:30 - 05:00 to say if you're going to work for the federal government or you're going to contract with the federal government you're going to be held to these higher standards that was W hey uh and then it took all the way to 1970 for uh legislators to get through OSHA uh which is the everybody um now there uh there some very small employers companies family businesses some others that exempt out of Osha um but that's why it's important for you to understand how to actually go to the
05:00 - 05:30 agency's website and and research to see what are the requirements for your company I can teach you the very broad perspective but when it comes to actually giving advice uh to your employer or to your client you need to be able to go in and and research it uh to make sure that you're giv good advice okay let's keep moving so OSHA occupational safety and health Act of 1970 uh with this Act Congress created
05:30 - 06:00 the occupational safety and health administration also known as OSHA so um when we look at legislator legislative branch creates laws that can also create executive branch agencies uh the fair labor standards Act created the Department of Labor um you've got others uh that were created the uh nlra created the National Labor Relations Board and OSHA created
06:00 - 06:30 OSHA the Act created the administration right so it was created to ensure safe and healthful working conditions for workers by setting and enforcing standards and by providing training Outreach education and assistance U so similar to the National Labor Relations Board uh administrative agencies at the federal level can only do so much so they're having to compel or persuade people uh or employers to do
06:30 - 07:00 what they're supposed to do so a lot of that comes in the particularly with OSHA in providing tools that are easy to implement so we can uh give employers a framework and we're going to share this framework and then you implement it into your work site and then that keeps employees safer so there's fewer incidents there's also reporting requirements and there's penalties uh there is a little bit of a punishment uh that can come up but if
07:00 - 07:30 you're only focused on punishing people you can't catch them all because there's too many employers too many incidents so the goal is preventative right when we're talking about safety you don't want someone to have to be harmed to then punish the company you'd rather the company do what they're supposed to do so that no one gets harmed okay so uh the occupational safety and health act covers most private sector employers and their workers in addition to some public
07:30 - 08:00 sector employers and workers in 50 states and certain territories and jurisdictions under Federal Authority so for example um Guam is considered a US Territory Puerto Rico uh some of the American Samoa there's um the US Virgin Islands these are not States but they're considered territories and so some of those uh are part of uh or guess those jurisdictions be the District of
08:00 - 08:30 Columbia DC is not a state Puerto Rico Virgin Islands American SMA Guam uh the northern Marina isand Islands Wake Island Johnston Island and the outer continental shelf lands uh as defined as the outer cont continental shelf lands act uh so those are some things that help absorb it and I will say um The Fairly over standards act and OSHA are quite interesting flsa was a lot of where my experience is digging and researching and I remember going down a
08:30 - 09:00 rabbit hole once uh it was a deep deep hole where there was actually leg legislation not just advice but legislation on um uh Fisheries so there's a lot of tuna plants in the American Samoa and um and so there were fishery manufacturing facilities specific to the American Samoa territories and there was Labor law associated with that and
09:00 - 09:30 Workplace Law and legislation uh so again it is not relevant to me now uh because I'm not there and I don't need to do that research but there may be a point where you are going to need to do that if you end up in one of these uh special places so know that um when we learn a lot of these regulations similar to your worksheet that I gave you there's a lot of these key words I want you to be able to to pull a workplace safety that's OSHA um so that you know where to go research
09:30 - 10:00 and you know where to go dig into the meat of the specific situation or this specific agency or client or company that you're working with so the ACT also covers employers and employees with only a few exceptions okay so self-employed people exempt Family Farms where only family members work
10:00 - 10:30 no ocean workplaces that are already protected by other Federal statutes so there's uh an additional safety act called the mine safety act or safety and health administration um the department of energy the Coast Guard uh state and local governments they already have um safety legislation specific to them and so OSHA doesn't Trump that it's a very interesting perspective because usually federal law Trump State uh and this is
10:30 - 11:00 one where it's no those were going to let because they're closer to the workplaces they're going to help um put the restrictions and limitations and requirements on those work sites and OSHA is much more broad sweeping now there's something called the general standard okay when it comes to OSHA so the duties of the employers and the employees is called the general standard okay so this is what it is
11:00 - 11:30 quote each employer shall furnish to each of their employees employment and a place of employment which are free from recognized hazards that are causing or are likely to cause death or serious physical harm to their employees each employer shall comply with occupational safety and health standards
11:30 - 12:00 promulgated under this chapter and this is a quote from the chapter of the legislation each employer shall comply with occupational safety and health standards and all rules regulations and orders issued pursuant to this chapter which are applicable to their own actions and conduct it's very sweeping when it comes to um you need to do this and as the legislation changes you still have to comply okay employers can be
12:00 - 12:30 prosecuted for violating this general duty Clause even if they don't violate a specific standard if they're aware of or should have been aware of a hazard that could cause injury or death Serious injury or death okay so OSHA safety standard so establishing safety rules every year the Federal Register um publ es all current
12:30 - 13:00 regulations and standards uh and this is not just with OSHA the Federal Register every legislative change um it it feeds in updates it's a it's a valuable website and Tool if you're digging into uh employment law and you're having to figure out what and I've said this before the lawyers tell you how to interpret the law the HR professionals are the one that figure out how to actually implement the law in their workplace the lawyers don't do that so so we still get to spend a lot of time taking through legislation um coming up
13:00 - 13:30 with plans checking it with our attorneys to make sure that it's still uh compliant with the law but we're the ones that actually have to figure out how to do it uh and figure out how it's going to make sense with our company and this is one of the reasons why uh in a bachelor of business we spend so much time going through our Core Curriculum while you're taking accounting classes and marketing classes and production management classes because the more you understand how your company functions the the better you're able to uh come up
13:30 - 14:00 with tools um and policies and procedures that will help your company function in compliance with employment laws okay so the Federal Register publishes all current regulations and standards uh this represents the most authoritative source of Osha standards so this is your your bookmark the page it's to first place you're going to go these standards fall into one of four categories okay you have General IND industry Maritime water construction
14:00 - 14:30 building and agriculture okay so there's also uh workers rights employees have the right to request an OSHA inspection if they believe their job duties or their working conditions pose a threat to their well-being these complaints can be made anonymously or the employee can insist
14:30 - 15:00 that OSHA maintain confidentiality employees have a right to refuse work only if okay they have the right but there is a catch right employees have the right to refuse work if they reasonably believe that their working conditions pose an imminent risk of death or serious bodily injury and there's not sufficient time or opportunity to seek effective redress
15:00 - 15:30 from the employer or from OSHA the administration additionally there's recordkeeping in 2002 ocean made the first major change to its recordkeeping Provisions in 30 years so uh the legislation was passed in 1970 and it took until 2002 30 years later 32 um uh to change their recordkeeping requirement okay so the rule updated
15:30 - 16:00 three recordkeeping forms that provided greater flexibility to employers by allowing them to computerize digitize injury and illness records before it had to be kept in physical paper form um so something to to note occupational injuries and illnesses need to be recorded if they result in any of the following so if there's a death if there's a loss of consciousness if there's d away from
16:00 - 16:30 work if work is restricted um or restricted work activity or a transfer a job transfer that needs to be recorded and if there's any medical treatment Beyond first aid that's the level that rises to documentation and and recordkeeping for each recordable injury or illness there's an OSHA form 301 that's called uh the injury and illness incident report or an equivalent form employers
16:30 - 17:00 can come up with their own version as long as it has uh the same information on it right most people just use the form 301 but if you have a company that already has their own version just make sure it's it's keeping the same uh detail right that's going to be your check to make sure that it it's not missing something that was on the 301 um but you need to complete it within seven calendar days of the incident
17:00 - 17:30 employers need to catalog all injuries a listing a register of in injuries on an OSHA form 300 this is called the log of work-related injuries and illnesses uh and employers need to summarize the log on an OSHA form 300a that's a summary form at the end of every year the log and the summary must be kept for five years and then you can sh it you can destroy it but uh the entire record of five-year history of
17:30 - 18:00 your workplace injury records needs to be maintained so that if there's an investigation or an audit you have access to those it also helps to see Trends particularly when we talk about illnesses if there's something in your manufacturing processes that is causing sickness but we don't quite realize what it is that can help track some of that um um that that record can help track and identify the source of the issue
18:00 - 18:30 right oser requires employers to know what hazards exist in their workplace and which standards apply to them employers May request onsite consultation from OSHA to help them know which standards to apply and what changes are needed more is needed than just identifying the the hazard however organizations need to periodically conduct their own self inspections it's
18:30 - 19:00 proactive right uh new hazards need to be identified and a thorough check should be made to ensure that safety rules are being followed OSHA specifies a three-step standard for creating a safe environment one use engineering standards or processes first to eliminate the hazard two follow safe work practices and training to avoid accidents and three use personal protective equipment or
19:00 - 19:30 PPE as as a last line of defense to enforce its standards OSHA is authorized to conduct workplace inspections uh every establishment covered by the ACT is subject to an inspection by a compliance officer and these inspections are conducted according to the following priority ranking again there's only so many resources uh so when OSHA is looking look at inspections they have to
19:30 - 20:00 prioritize where they're going to send their inspectors okay so here's um the priority ranking one reports of imminent danger let's go check that out two investigations of fatalities death uh and catastrophes so uh significant injury events uh we talked about and um a chemical plant having an explosion um people were injured there people made have a fatality uh but regardless we
20:00 - 20:30 need to look into that employee complaints of alleged violations so as employees complain anonymously or not anonymously um they can can seek out um an an inspection but they need to look at that but it's only it's third on the list right um and then lastly a programmed inspection based Bas on Industrial accident statistics
20:30 - 21:00 so um it's very similar to U like Financial audits right but these are safety Audits and safety inspections so you've got imminent danger we need to go check that out someone was significantly harmed or killed uh or there was a significant catastrophic event we need to check that out there is a rise of employee complaints we should check that out when
21:00 - 21:30 we can but every year or every program cycle they're going to come in and say we've seen based on our 300 um and the 301s the 300 list that they get every year they're going to analyze it and look at what are the most common incidents that are occurring what industries uh are having more significant incidents and they'll actually create a plan and say okay this month we're going to uh investigate I
21:30 - 22:00 say hit we're going to Target um this construction uh industry and the use of ladders whatever it might be and then your company may fall on that list as the lucky lottery draw right um and so that's how they're they're going to Target it to try to look at if there's Trends in workplace um incidents then we can try to do some preventative um work for the future so with few exceptions the inspections are conducted without any
22:00 - 22:30 advanced notice in fact alerting a company in advance of an OSHA inspection could result in a $7,000 fine and or up to six months in jail that's how serious it is to where when an inspector is going to come in they need to see the workplace as it is not how it's been cleaned up okay and so it's a very very serious thing when OSHA comes to inspect uh a work work site and we really um
22:30 - 23:00 need to treat them with courtesy and Care uh but if we're doing what we're supposed to be doing it's not going to be that big of an issue if we're not being safe and if we're not creating a safe workplace then we might have some concerns which brings me to My Le my next slide so after compliance officers report their findings to the OSHA Office the area director determines what citations or pen PES will be issued uh
23:00 - 23:30 the citations indicate which standards have been violated and set a time limit for correcting each problem okay so if an employer feels a citation or a penalty as unfair or incorrect they can appeal um they can appeal the decision the employer is allowed 15 working days after receiving the citation to file what's called a notice of a contest there is no specific format of the
23:30 - 24:00 notice of of contest but it should clearly explain the employer's reasons for filing the appeal so it's I disagree letter basically um the notice if forwarded to OSHA the OSHA review commission is uh where it gets forwarded to and they will assign a case uh to an administrative law judge the judge evaluates the case and either throws it out or holds a hearing with the employer and employees before they make a ruling it's kind of
24:00 - 24:30 similar to an arbitration type role uh on the the labor side um after the administrative law judge has ruled any party to the case can request a further review by the commission commission rulings can be appealed to a federal court of appeals so that is an attempt to get things out of U the the regular courts and we have a process but if there is disagreement it can rise up to getting back into the
24:30 - 25:00 judicial process to a federal court of appeals criminal penalties violations of Osha standards can be very costly for a company there are five levels of violations under the act one it's called Dem Minimus violations there's no direct or immediate relationship to job safety or health so there's no penalty it was wrong we need to write it down we need
25:00 - 25:30 to cite it but we're not going to penalize you for it get it fixed two it's called other than serious violations this is a direct relationship to safety or health but it's unlikely to cause serious physical harm this is a discretionary penalty of as much as $7,000 but it can be adjusted downward as much as 95% so this is where there's a lot of uh discretion of the um the commission to
25:30 - 26:00 decide how they want uh to penalize the employer this is why you treat your uh your investigators well because there's a lot of discretion when it comes to that penalty uh three it's called a serious violation so substantial probability of death or serious physical harm and the employer knew or should have known of the hazard this is a mandatory penalty of up to
26:00 - 26:30 $7,000 but it can be adjusted downward based on the employers uh good faith history of previous violations so a acting in good faith really does help when it comes to some of these penalties so we've been investigated before um we quickly addressed the problem and we've shown that good faith of we're trying to be compliant we're trying to be safe it is imp possible for any company to be 100% safe I could look
26:30 - 27:00 around this office right here and probably find safety violations that I don't even know exist and no one else does uh but if an investigator came in they could probably find things uh and so that's where you know if you should have known let's work through it okay four it's called a willful violation this is intentional disregard for a specific osia standard or the general duty Clause this results
27:00 - 27:30 in penalties from 5,000 to 70,000 770,000 for each violation and or as long as six months in prison if the violation results in death so it's not just the the company doesn't go to prison the responsible party can go to prison a fine of up to
27:30 - 28:00 $250,000 for an individual or $500,000 for a company can be imposed for uh a criminal conviction serious wolf if you are a blatantly disregarding the rules significant penalties can happen and then you have the fifth one it's called repeated violations this is repeated willful viol ations of a similar nature companies
28:00 - 28:30 that are just ignoring the rules and they've been cited we paid the fund and as as unfortunate as it is there are certain times where companies have gone through the cost benefit assessment and you basically say it is cheaper for us to pay the fine than it is for us to implement the change at some point when you get into that repeat not every company does this but there are conversations that can go into play um the repeated
28:30 - 29:00 violation at some point companies may hit up to $70,000 for each violation so um that that is pretty significant uh to us maybe not as significant to some of these multi-billion dollar companies uh but we'll see uh and and it is an attempt to try to create a safer workplace uh for the employees that are
29:00 - 29:30 there so top 10 citations so uh the top most frequently cited standards and this is fiscal year 2022 uh which is October 1st of 2021 to September 30 of 2022 uh and this is the most recent um report that I have at the moment uh the following list is the top 10 most frequently cited standards following inspections of work sites uh by federal OSHA for all Industries they published this list to alert people
29:30 - 30:00 of what some of the common uh Trends are okay so you have fall protection in the construction field we have a hazard communication General Industry ladders construction respiratory protection in the General Industry not surprised postco that respiratory protection um we we've been number of us have been kind of masked out uh with having to wear
30:00 - 30:30 masks so that doesn't really surprise me to see that one up on the list we have Scaffolding in construction uh number six control of hazardous energy uh lockout tagout uh in the General Industry seven powered industrial trucks General Industry and I I put a forklift image up there because forklift drivers love to play on their forklifts uh and it is a problem sometimes uh number
30:30 - 31:00 eight fall protection training having the record um having the record or at least doing making sure that employees um understand how to prevent Falls nine eye and face protection and 10 machinery and machine guarding in the General Industry those are the top 10 for fiscal year 2022
31:00 - 31:30 OSHA encourages every organization to maintain an ongoing safety program uh most large organizations can afford to hire safety officer and to staff a separate safety department and to develop and monitor a safety program uh however you know establishing a safety program is a problem for small companies because they can't afford to hire additional Personnel consequently safety responsibilities are you usually added
31:30 - 32:00 to other responsibilities of present staff in a small company so many small Proprietors are overwhelmed by what they believe are added burdens imposed by Osha Osha recommends a fourpoint safety program one management commitment and employee involvement two conducting a work site analysis three Hazard prevention and control and four training for employees
32:00 - 32:30 supervisors and managers now let's talk a little bit about workers compensation uh this is officially called work men's compensation because again the the the original uh legislation it started in 191 and so uh they use the word men uh as the plural of all genders but then also uh males or primarily in the workforce uh we've changed it over time
32:30 - 33:00 to just call it workers compensation all workers right uh but this provides income continuation and reimbursement of accident expenses for employees who are injured on the job regardless of who was responsible for the accident okay in the early 1900s about 20,000 employees were killed each year many more were severely injured leaving
33:00 - 33:30 widows families and disabled workers unable to support themselves although public sentiment generally supported the idea that Injured Workers deserved some sort of compensation making employers liable to exorbitant civil lawsuits also seemed unfair so workers compensation regulations are governed at the state level and they vary in scope depending on what State you're in the basic
33:30 - 34:00 concept uh underlying workers compensation laws is liability without fault liability without fault okay that means that an injured employee is entitled to a moderate and reasonable amount of compensation regardless of who caused the accident a second underlying concept is that such compensation is part of the expense of production that's just the the cost cost of doing business right part of the expense of production and
34:00 - 34:30 therefore um it's not chargeable to or it is chargeable to the employer right um it's the cost of doing business so workers compensation laws provide immediate financial aid for Injured Workers and remove the need for those lawsuits workers compensation is administered by each state according to each each State's own laws because each
34:30 - 35:00 state has its own law the provisions are not all the same to be covered by workers compensation law and to be eligible for benefits employees need to work for a covered employer uh in a covered job covered uh injuries uh most lawsuits or laws uh simply say that they cover injuries arising out of and in the course of employment so while you're
35:00 - 35:30 doing your job so if I'm just on site not working that's not necessarily covered by workman's comp for workers compensation but through the the regular course of my job if I am injured then that's that's what would apply okay uh there's a waiting period so after an injury occurs almost all state laws require a certain waiting period usually one to two weeks before
35:30 - 36:00 compensation uh is triggered and becomes available the purpose of the wait waiting period is to reduce cost the laws assume that employees should bear some of the cost of their injuries and that a short waiting period is not too great a loss under workers uh compensation laws there are three types of benefits that are provided by most most States death benefits Medical expenses and wage replacement payments
36:00 - 36:30 the death benefits are a one time lump sum paid to the Survivor um so the employee that passes away their uh Survivor is their family member they're a beneficiary uh and that's a one-time payment hospital hospital and medical payments are usually paid immediately after the injury without a specified waiting period so if you ever go to the emergency room likely while you're bleeding and filling out paperwork um
36:30 - 37:00 It'll ask every one of them will ask uh is this a workplace injury because the medical facility knows they're basically going to send the bill to your employer they're not even going to worry about sending the bill to you as the patient because they know that the the medical expenses for the injury is going to be covered by workers compensation um and then wage replacement payments so after a waiting period um you usually between 50 to 70%
37:00 - 37:30 of the workers's average weekly wage is covered uh or paid back you're not doing the work so you're not going to get 100% but you're not going to be left out in the cold and that's for a period of time and every law or every state has different um different end periods of how long those payments go this was a big one and this is a lot um hopefully it has opened your eyes a little bit to all the different types of um extra thinking and it's not fun
37:30 - 38:00 thinking when you're talking about workplace safety and health no one wants to think about all the bad things that could happen but when you do spend energy and time planning for the worst you can actually create mechanisms and structures so that you can prevent those from happening or hopefully uh prevent things that could have been prevented um and then you save lives potentially you save um harm potential harm to your your
38:00 - 38:30 your employees and it helps prod uh production uh people employees feel better when they work in a safer environment uh they're going to be better employees they're going to produce more um and so it it's a win-win for everybody it's just kind of a sad place to live sometimes mentally uh when that's what you get stuck thinking about all the time but definitely as an HR professional you should always be keeping safety in mind whether or not you're directly responsible for
38:30 - 39:00 addressing um OSHA for your company those are all the things that you need to think thanks so much